After investing capital and time into your website, what’s next? Websites, and digital marketing as a whole, are rarely “set it and leave it” type strategies. Chances are you have a website, but it’s not performing. By not performing, I mean it has consistent traffic, but your bounce rate is high, there’s little engagement, and ultimately, it’s not functioning the way it should for your business to get a return on its investment.
A major key here is we’re assuming traffic to your site is high and consistent; without this piece, it’s difficult to measure how well your site actually performs. If you need help getting traffic to your site, please contact us today for your free strategy session. We like to use organic traffic drivers, NOT paid advertising. These drivers kill two birds with one stone: building your reputation online while driving traffic to your site at the same time. More on that later.
Assuming the traffic is there, why isn’t your site converting those leads to potential clients? In my experience, there are three main reasons.
1. The overall design is working against you.
The Stanford Persuasive Technology Lab conducted a study in Web Credibility, which showed that consumers quickly evaluate a site by visual design alone (source). This means no matter how informative and professional your copy is, if your site does not use visual cues correctly, consumers are less likely to think your site is credible, which unfortunately can translate to your business as well. This could mean higher bounce rates and low conversion rates. Design standards have changed over the years, and in our fast-paced culture, keeping up can be tricky. Most generally, sites need to be modernized (or updated to be desktop, tablet, and mobile-ready), easy to navigate, and guide a user to the desired destination or action. Sites that leverage visual cues, along with user-based design, have a much higher conversion rate compared to those that do not.
2. It’s too wordy.
79% of people do not actually read content online-they scan it, according to the Neilson Norman Group, a leading consulting firm on user experience. So large paragraphs, no matter how wonderfully written, most likely are not being read. Along with the visual cues as discussed above, copy (or the written paragraphs on your website) needs to be used strategically. Bold headlines, brief paragraphs, intentionally placed call-to-actions, and so on. This especially applies to the main landing page of your site.
3. There’s traffic, but it’s not the right audience.
Let’s say you have good traffic and the overall design of the site is functioning as it should be, but your conversion rate is still low. A common reason for this issue is that the traffic you’re getting is not your ideal audience. Knowing your target audience goes back to branding strategy; a well-developed and articulated brand identity outlines not only your brand as a whole (mission statement, competitive advantage, etc.) but also outlines who your target audience is and how to attract them. We use our unique Branding Strategy Blueprint to build depth into your brand, while also studying your audience. This approach creates a digital marketing strategy specific to your business.
These three keys when used together, along with our exclusive strategies, can put your business on the path to becoming a Powerhouse online. Our goal at Portal Enterprises is to capture your unique vision and connect your business with the right people. Let us help you start attracting more high-quality clients today. Feel free to message me with any questions you may have or to schedule your free strategy session!
